Oklahoma City’s Dillon Jones (3) scores as Utah Jazz forward Kyle Filipowski (22) commits a foul during an NBA Summer League game on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, in Salt Lake City. 
Oklahoma City’s Dillon Jones takes a selfie with a fan’s phone, drawing the attention of a line of children in Salt Lake City after the Thunder defeated the Jazz in an NBA Summer League game on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at the Delta Center.
Rick Bowmer, Associated Press
Oklahoma City’s Dillon Jones (3) scores as Utah Jazz forward Kyle Filipowski (22) commits a foul during an NBA Summer League game on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, in Salt Lake City.
SALT LAKE CITY — Dillon Jones and the Thunder were on the undercard Monday night for the Jazz’s overtime victory in the SLC Summer League, hosted by Utah at the Delta Center.
Oklahoma City was on primetime Tuesday night against the Jazz on the second day of the three-day event, with the former Weber State star in the spotlight in front of a large crowd.
With 7:15 left in the second quarter, Jones tried to challenge Utah’s 2023 draft pick Brice Sensabaugh but then retreated without a clear play being possible.
Sensabaugh clapped to Jones as he followed him to the perimeter with a smile, and Jones figuratively clapped back and rose to hit a 30-foot three-pointer over the Jazz guard (and took the opportunity to say a few words as they shuffled to the other side of the court).
With that, Jones scored 15 points in the first 10 1/2 minutes of the game.
BRETT HEIN, Standard Examiner
Oklahoma City’s Dillon Jones takes a selfie with a fan’s phone, drawing the attention of a line of children in Salt Lake City after the Thunder defeated the Jazz in an NBA Summer League game on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, at the Delta Center.
Oklahoma City led by as many as 23 points in the first half and went on to score 26 points in the fourth quarter, eventually beating the Jazz 98-75.
Jones finished with a game-high 21 points on 6-of-7 field goal shooting, 3-of-3 from downtown and 4-of-5 from the free throw line in the first half alone. He added seven rebounds, four assists and one steal in 24 minutes.
“He wants to win, he’s invested in the team, impacts the game in a lot of ways,” OKC summer league head coach Kam Woods said. “He’s done a great job of picking his spots, whether he’s on the ball or off the ball, and being a playmaker for us on both ends of the court.
“I thought he trusted the pass more and was ready to play when the ball came to him.”
After overtime wins over Zach Edey and Memphis on Monday night, Utah held off Keyonte George and Walker Kessler, both of whom played in the Jazz’s main rotation last season. (Edey, the towering center from Purdue, was also in the Grizzlies’ game against Philadelphia earlier Tuesday, a game that Memphis fizzled out.)
The Jazz were led by Sensabaugh and Kenneth Lofton Jr. with 18 points, and Jason Preston with 10 points, all of whom were regulars for the Salt Lake City Stars last season.
No. 10 overall pick Cody Williams also saw increased playing time for the Jazz, scoring seven points on 3-of-1 shooting in 29 minutes.
Jones closed out his performance with an excellent two-for-one sequence late in the third quarter.
He grabbed a rebound on a Max Abmas miss with 38 seconds left and, seven seconds later, entered the paint and banked in a 10-foot floater. Jones then got the ball back in his hands on another Utah miss, pushed upcourt and passed to Cormac Ryan for a corner 3 to end the frame.
Jones finished with a plus-20 on the plus-minus chart.
“Dillon Jones didn’t make many errors tonight. 6 of 7, and his two turnovers pale in comparison to the countless reads he made,” Joel Lorenzi, Thunder beat writer for The Oklahoman, posted late in the third quarter. “Pretty, pretty good.”
Ousmane Dieng scored 20 points for OKC and second-round pick Ajay Mitchell totaled 11 points and 10 assists.
The SLC Summer League concludes Wednesday with Oklahoma City taking on Memphis at 5 p.m. and the Jazz taking on the 76ers at 7 p.m.
Newsletter
Join the thousands of people who already receive our daily newsletter.
